The invention relates generally to emission testing of an automotive vehicle and more specifically to cooling selected components of an automotive vehicle to a predetermined temperature prior to the testing of an automotive vehicle.
Exhaust gas emission tests of motor vehicles, if not performed in a controlled manner, can cause varying results. Some of the factors causing variability include the temperature of the exhaust system, particularly the catalyst, the engine block temperature including the fluids contained therein, the transmission and the ambient temperature of the environment in which the vehicle is tested. During the development cycle of the vehicle, several tests are performed. Currently, vehicles are soaked for 12 hours in a temperature controlled environment between each exhaust gas emission test to ensure that the temperature of the critical components has stabilized.
Generally, the engine is the most massive structure of the automotive vehicle and the engine block and the fluids contained therein take a significant amount of time to cool naturally. The engine contains oil and coolant which is typically a 50-50 mixture of ethylene glycol and water. An engine cannot be cooled too fast from the inside or outside because condensation may form on the cylinder walls. Condensation on the cylinder walls can adversely effect exhaust gas emissions data.